Wolf Creek State Park Campground

I was looking to stay at a state park with swimming and had never been to this one. I stayed here from Wednesday to Saturday. I was surprised when I arrived that there wasn’t a ranger, host, or campground office to check in with. There was a self registration kiosk on the site that was supposed to be the host. I never saw a ranger the entire time I was there and the host didn’t show up until Friday. The bathrooms were dirty and weren’t cleaned until Friday. The beach was small and also not well kept. I only saw one hiking trail. Many of the other campers had boats, so I guess it might be a good place to stay if you’re a boater, but not so much if you’re looking to do much hiking. The campsites weren’t bad, but most were kind of small and close together.

We stopped in to Wolf Creek State Park later in the day on a Wednesday after trying to stop at a different campground that was closed. We were worried about finding a spot as the sun was going down so we called even though no one usually answers phones at state parks (esp during COVID). The woman that answered was SO nice and I was so happy to hear a voice on the other end. So that’s a huge plus. You can reserve spots online in advance but clearly we did not because we didn’t know we’d be headed there. Same day is first come first serve. We are tent people and love primitive camping in spots where we can really be away from everyone and at least pretend like we’re alone. Rolling in in the dark, we weren’t motivated to checkout the walk-in campsites. And it wasn’t necessary because the area - which if full would’ve been pretty cramped for our taste- was absolutely empty. So we were happy. Many many spots for RVs all next to one another but there was tree cover for some and the possibility of a little bit of privacy but not much in that area.

We had an almost full moon, but otherwise I think the stars would’ve been pretty awesome. The next morning we woke up and took a little hike down to Shelby Resevoir to see what was around. We were at campsite 18 and it was about 10 min hike down over there. Beautiful and big! Maybe good swimming I would assume? Too late in the year for us.

We will definitely be back to checkout more of the primitive/walk-in/hike in sites! Hiking trails look interesting and fun and Eagle Creek State Park is just across the water (that’s the bigger one). The 4 stars was because the sites are pretty close together which- even with RVs- I think people mind- but maybe not? We love to be back in the woods ans I do think there is an option for that. We just didn’t have time to check it out. Will update!

Clean campground but camping proximity is very close.

Nice big spots. 30 and 50 amp available. Right on lake Shelbyville. 309 spots 141 are reservable

Nice park, spacious sites, bring plenty of water hose. The water faucets for fill up can be a bit far away.. Shower house was older but was heated and water was hot.. Definately will be back again.

This is a wonderful campground with drive in availability, equestrian camp and reservable sites!  The have great camp hosts Dave and Sharon on the reservable side that will help out in anyway and are so friendly!  This campground also has boat access and a beach and hiking trails.   It is built into the woods so most lots are very shady and all are very level.

the keepers are super friendly and accommodating. most lots are spacious. my only complaint would be that the trash dumpsters are too far away from the camping areas.

Lots of equestrian parking and camping flush toilets neat trails very swell nice better if s en during the fall. Fishing and boatibg here as well.

We have camped here many times and this time was awesome as well. The park is huge and is one of the only state park's in Illinois with horse camping and horse trails. There are 13 horse camp sites and additional trailer parking for about 6 more rigs with tie out posts for riders that will not be camping. There are several miles of horse trails and the area is set apart from hiking trails and the other camping areas. There are hundreds of campsites in this park in addition to the horse campgrounds and the entire area is maintained by the US Corps of Engineers. There are full hookup RV sites everywhere with tons of flush toilet bathrooms and shower houses in each large section. There is also a tent camp area without electricity, these sites are cheaper and there are lake front sites available here too. There is a beach that closes after Labor Day, but there are lots of sites available all year round. There are lots of hiking trails and deer run through the park in herds in the winter months. The hiking is OK in this park and good if you like short 1 to 1 1/2 mile hikes. I recommend visiting in the fall after Labor Day, October when leaves are changing is my favorite time for this campground. Clean restrooms, showers and a small store at the entrance for bait, firewood or forgotten items make this a great place to spend a few days.

Website: https://www.dnr.illinois.gov/Parks/Pages/WolfCreek.aspx